I am wondering what is the better choice of power amp for my system. I have a Pioneer VSX1016TXV-k 120 watts per channel x 7. My front speakers are going to be Polk RTi12. I keep reading that I should add a power amp to power the Polk front speakers. What would be the best choice - Onkyo M 282 (100 watt x 2), or Audiosource amp 300 (150 watt x 2). Not real familiar with either and don't have much money left to spend right now. Just want to know the best move between these two items. Any thoughts or comments will be greatly apprecited.

Robert, the best move is to save your money. Get the speakers in and try them with the Pio receiver, depending on your listening tastes and room, you may be pleasantly surprised. If not, you can always buy the amp later.

I have not heard either of your two amp candidates, but I prefer the build quality on the Onkyo products I have seen to those of the Audiosource products.

I agree with Viridian...listen first. Your speakers are rated for amps in the 50-500 watt range so an amp upgrade is not out of the question...I would however, listen first...save some money ($700-$1,500)...buy a good used amp at Audiogon down the road should you feel the need.

The Onkyo and Audiosource amps you mention are probably no better than the Pioneer in any large enough way (if at all) to warrent the extra expence.

The polks are nice, a bit bass heavy, but nice...However, they aren't easy to drive. Your receiver will push them fine in stereo. However, be careful trying to drive 5 or 7 of these from your receiver. The load may be more than it will handle at any mid to high volumes.

If you are thinking HT is your preference, you should have the same amp and speakers for the front 3 at least. Therefor, upgrading the amp will require a 3 channel (5 channel amps won't cost much more). Also, you won't notice much of a volume difference until you get into at least 200 watts/channel. You will notice a quality difference with most amp upgrades to a seperate amp.

Stick with the Pioneer for home theater. Your amps AND speakers should all match as close as possible for the best results. If you want to improve 2-channel then give us a budget and I am sure you will get more than a few budget amp suggestions.

If your receiver has pre-outs then you could upgrade with a seperate multi-channel amp down the road.